Why is the West Lake called the West Lake? Simply talk about the historical causes.

The West Lake in Hangzhou was first recorded in the Geography of Han Shu (Volume 28) by Ban Gu in the Eastern Han Dynasty: "Wulin Mountain is where Wulin water goes. East into the sea, eight hundred and thirty miles. " It is generally believed that Wulin Mountain is the general name of the mountains around Lingyin and Tianzhu, and the south stream and the north stream originating in this area merge into Jinsha stream, which flows eastward into the West Lake, which is the largest natural water source of the West Lake. Therefore, the name "Wulin Water" is the first recorded name of the West Lake.

Li Daoyuan's Notes on Water Classics in the Northern Wei Dynasty recorded: "On the Nanjiang side of the county, there is a sacred lake of Ming Dynasty. It is rumored by the elders that there is a golden bull in the lake. If you see it in ancient times, it is unpredictable, and the name of the lake is unknown." At this time, two other ancient names of the West Lake were derived: Mingsheng Lake and Jinniu Lake. About the Eastern Han Dynasty, a local official named Huaxin built a pond in the east of West Lake to defend the salt tide of Qiantang River, hence the name Qiantang Lake. This is the general name of West Lake in Tang Tang. In Bai Juyi's poems, Qiantang Lake is often mentioned, for example, in Answering a guest's question about Hangzhou, "the mountain name Tianzhu piles up indigo, and the lake name Qiantang sheds green oil". The poet Zhang Hu also has a poem entitled "Qiantang Lake Night in Early Spring".

The name of "West" Lake appeared because the former Qiantang County was moved from the west of the West Lake to the east of the West Lake after Sui Dynasty, that is, Qiantang Lake, which was originally in the east of the city, is now located in the west of the city. Lake lives in the west of the city, hence the name West Lake, which is the same as that of other places in the country with the same name. At the latest in the Tang Dynasty, the title of "West Lake" has been frequently used. It is also a poem by Bai Juyi, and the word "West Lake" is often used. For example, his poems are entitled "West Lake Returning to Gushan Temple at night to present guests" and "West Lake Farewell" and so on.

After Su Shi (Dongpo), a poet in the Northern Song Dynasty, sang the eternal farewell song "If you want to compare the West Lake with Xizi, it is always appropriate to make light makeup and heavy makeup" in his famous poem "Drinking Chu Qing on the Lake", the West Lake has gained the reputation of Xizi Lake. Xizi is the peerless beauty of Yue in the Spring and Autumn Period. Compared with dozens of lakes named after the West Lake in the world, only the West Lake in Hangzhou deserves such a high reputation. In the Southern Song Dynasty, the West Lake was abnormally prosperous and gorgeous. The ruling group in the south of the Yangtze River did not want to restore their homeland, but indulged in lakes and mountains and luxuries, spending a lot of money and partying. So the West Lake was called "selling gold pot", which was very appropriate and very spicy.

In addition to the names mentioned above, there are many aliases for West Lake, such as Longchuan, Qianyuan, Shihan Lake, Fangshengchi, Shanghu, Gaoshi Lake, Mingyue Lake, Meiren Lake and so on. Each alias has its own origin. Shihan Lake was built by Bai Juyi during the reign of Tang Changqing to store and drain the lake. The upper lake is relative to the lower lake in the north; The release pool was obtained because Wang Qinruo, the governor of Hangzhou, invited the West Lake as the release pool during the Jubilee of the Northern Song Dynasty. Sage Lake is a Southern Song Dynasty literati building key, which is known as the wind of sage in West Lake. And so on, and so on. The West Lake has so many elegant names, which just shows her long history, beautiful scenery, rich cultural connotation and charming charm from one side.